The Zamfara State governorship candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, in the forthcoming 2023 general election, Dauda Lawal-Dare, has condemned an attack on members and supporters of the party by some political thugs allegedly sponsored by the state government.
He described the attack as the height of lawlessness, brigandage, and provocation capable of escalating the tension in the state.
This is contained in a statement issued by the Dauda Lawal-Dare Media Centre in Gusau, stressing that the PDP candidate and his entourage were attacked by what it called armed to-the-teeth thugs, Friday night while entering the Zamfara state capital.
The statement read in parts: “We are in a critical time. Unfortunately, we found ourselves in this mess. We thought thuggery and hooliganism had become a thing of the past in the state, but it has been resurrected by the APC and State government.”
It said, the Peoples’ Democratic Party, PDP, has been known to be law-abiding and that it strictly works and abides by the law of the State which was why its waited for the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC’s, announced date for the commencement of the governorship campaign before organizing any politically related activity in the State.
The statement noted that the PDP fixed Saturday, October 15th as a day to receive thousands of the All Progressives Congress APC, members who decamped to the PDP folk as well as to inaugurate the 2023 governorship Campaign Council.
The statement alleged that some Political thugs led by one Aliyu Alhazai Shinkafi, the former chairman of the Zamfara Anti-thuggery committee and Commandant of the Zamfara Road Traffic Agency, ZAROTA, attacked the residence of the PDP candidate.
It also claimed that Alhazzai led thugs and barricaded the road leading to Lawal’s residence and venue of the gathering with two vehicles, setting up a parameter for the unprovoked attack and they used deadly weapons on the PDP supporters, vandalized campaign buses and looted.
The PDP governorship candidate said, the party knows that the APC and the Matawalle-led government intends to unlawfully use force to stop the PDP campaign activities across Zamfara state.
He said, the hooliganism that they were not praying for, has returned to the State.
Also Read : Zamfara Politics: PDP, APC accuse each other of sponsoring thugs
Lawal-Dare claimed that the Zamfara State people are fed up with the All Progressives Congress, APC, and its leadership style of governor Mohammed Bello and this explains why the APC and the governor were tensed by the wide acceptance and popularity of the PDP governorship candidate, Dauda Lawal-Dare, hence, they resorted to violence.
“We are appealing to the Inspector General of Police, Director General of Department of State Service, DSS, and all other relevant security agencies to intervene and stop the APC and Governor Mohammed from unlawfully using State apparatus and thugs to attack the PDP campaign activities.
It also alleged that Governor Mohammed is trying to stifle the electioneering activities of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP and its governorship candidate, Dauda Lawal-Dare.
(Editor: Nkoli Omhoudu)
